Chapter 718: You Think I’ll Still Believe You?

Chapter 718: Chapter 718: You Think I’ll Still Believe You?

Ethan Kingsley quickly grabbed her by the shoulders, thinking something had upset her, and pulled her into his arms. "Little Cutie, what’s wrong? Don’t scare me."

"Why did you have to hurt him..." Ivy Tanner murmured, repeating the question over and over. The thought of Lucas Rhodes’s tragic fate made her body go limp, and an immense despair plunged her into darkness.

She stared into his eyes, her gaze a mixture of fragility and resolve. "Don’t call me ’Little Cutie’ anymore," she said. "I’m Ivy Tanner. I was never a fool. You all forced me to be this way... All of you forced me..."

As she spoke, her body gave out and she slid to the floor. She hugged her head with her hands like a helpless little girl, tears streaming down her face.

Ethan Kingsley looked down at her, instinctively taking a step back. His face was a mask of disbelief, but his mind was reeling.

After a long, long time, he finally managed to ask, "You’re not a fool?"

Ivy Tanner snapped her head up to meet his dark eyes, a small smile playing on her lips. "That’s right. I lied to you. I lied to everyone."

"Why did you lie to me?" Ethan Kingsley asked, his voice hoarse as he fought the urge to destroy everything.

Ivy Tanner laughed through her tears. "Because you all wanted to kill me. I was afraid of dying, so I had to play dumb."

"Then why tell me now that you’re not a fool?" Ethan Kingsley asked.

"You hurt Mr. Rhodes. He’s innocent, and I can’t stand to see my friends get hurt for me anymore."

"Lucas Rhodes knew you were pretending?"

"Yes."

"Who else knows?"

"Claire Sinclair and Theo Rhodes."

Ethan Kingsley suddenly laughed, a cruel, cold sound. "So, you’re saying they all knew? That I was the only one in the dark."

Ivy Tanner laughed along with him. "That’s right. You were the only one who didn’t know."

"Good. Very good." Ethan Kingsley slowly crouched in front of her, his hand shooting out to grip her chin. "Do you have any idea what the consequences are for coming back to me? Hmm?"

As he spoke, his gaze drifted down to her slightly swollen belly.

Ivy Tanner could feel the chill radiating from him. Her heart was filled with bleak terror, but she forced a smile. "The worst that can happen is that we both die. I don’t care, though. After all, I don’t know if the baby is yours... or Mr. Rhodes’s."

"What did you say?" Ethan Kingsley’s eyes narrowed, a thin veil of rage shadowing their depths.

Ivy Tanner fought the urge to flee and said through gritted teeth, "I said, the baby might be yours, or it might be Mr. Rhodes’s."

Ethan Kingsley’s brow furrowed, his gaze locked onto her stomach. For a fleeting moment, his heart stirred.

’If the baby is mine...’

’No, she must be lying to me!’

’If the baby were mine, she wouldn’t have said it like this. She would have insisted it was mine.’

’She’s just doing this to make me waver, to get me to let her go... and to let that damn man go.’

’She’s such a practiced liar. I can’t trust her ever again!’

"Heh..." Ethan Kingsley laughed, tightening his grip on her chin until it felt like it would break. "Little Cutie, you’ve been lying to me for years. Do you really think I’d still believe you?"

"Believe what you want." With that, Ivy Tanner shut her eyes in anguish, awaiting his final verdict.

’To Ethan Kingsley, this was just proof that she’d lost her nerve, that she couldn’t keep up the lie.’

’Damn woman!’

Fury burned in Ethan Kingsley’s chest. "You came here for a showdown just to get me to let Lucas Rhodes go," he snarled. "Well, I’m telling you now—dream on!"

Ivy Tanner’s eyes flew open. "You dare touch him again!" she screamed. "Don’t you dare!"